arnold



(No Model.)

. A.'B. ARNOLD.

OAR BRAKEAND STARTER.

- Patented July 1 1884.

ESEES! N. PETERS. Pbamuhn n nar. wmm wm D. C

UN TED STATES,

PATENT rricn.

QXLFRED n. AnNoLD, on COLUMBUS, INDIANA, AssIeNon or TWO-THIBDS TO REINOLDB. BUSOH AND ALBERT H. BUSGH, BOTH OF SAME PLACE.

CAR BRAKE AND STARTER.

SPECIFICATION forming partof Letters Patent No. 301,423, dated July 1, 1884.

' Application filed December 31, 1883. (No model.)

To ctZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known thatl, ALFRED B. ARNOLD, a citizen of the United States, residing at O0- lumbus, in the county of Bartholomew and State of Indiana, have invented a new and useful Improved Car Brake and Starter, of which the following is a specification- My invention relates to an improved car brake and starter of. that class in which a portion of the force required to overcome the momentum of the moving car is caused to re-v act to start the car.

The objects of my improvements are, first, to

provide means to connect at will one of the axles of a car-truck with one or more pistons adapted to move in corresponding air-tightcylinders, so that the'forward revolution of said truck will cause said piston or pistons to compress the air in their respective cylinders, and thereby check the revolution of the truck and the consequent forward movement of the car to which it is attached; second, to provide means for automatically connecting the above-mentioned piston or pistons with one or more of the car-wheels, avhereby the reaction of the air compressed in the said cylinder or cylinders shall operate to turn said wheels forward, and thereby start the car; third, to provide means for insuring the complete forward stroke of the above-mentioned pistons.

The accompanying drawings illustrate my invention.

Figure l is a plan. Fig. 2 is a vertical 1ongitudinal section through a a. Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of one of the wheels with a portion of the side broken away to show the clutch. Fig. 4 is a plan and partial section of the brake-clutch. Fig. 5 is an elevation of the brake-lever;

Like letters refer to the same parts in all the figures.

Arepresents the floor-frame of a car, mounted on a pair of trucks.

1; b are cylinders suitably secured to the under side of frame A.

c, Fig. 2, is a piston; d, the piston-rod; e, aspiral spring inclosed in an air-tight casin g, f, and resting against piston c, fora purpose 5o hereinafter explained.

, ner side of the wheel.

. g is a valve opening inward. Both cylinders and their associated parts are alike. h is a cross-head to which piston-rods d d are connected. 13 is a guide for said cross-head. I j j are connecting-rods attached to the ends of cross-head h, and to a pair of automatic clutches, k k, which engage the car-wheels B B. The construction and operation of said clutches are shown in Fig. 3, in which B is the car-wheel. Z is an annular flange projecting from the ink is a hollow segmental arm open on the inside and adapted to swing loosely on the axle 'm, and inside of the flange Z. a is a pawl, one end of which rests in a bear ing, 0, in said segmental arm k, and the other end vibrates between one side of arm and a stud, p, on the arm.

G is a spool turning loosely on axle m and connected with cross-head h by a strap, q.

'r r are friction-clutches adapted to slide longitudinally on axle m and to engage the ends of spool (J. Said friction-clutches slide on keys inserted'in the axle, so that they turn with the axle, and they are caused to simultaneously engage the ends of spool O by means of levers s s, toggle-joint t, rod 20, and lever o.

The operation of my device is asfollows: The car being in motion in the direction indicated by the arrow, Fig. 1, when brake-lever o is thrown forward, the clutches r r are simultaneously forced against spool C, and said spool is thereby caused to revolve with the axle on which it andthe clutches are mounted. Strap q is thereby wound upon said spool, and crosshead it and the pistons connected thereto are drawn toward the axle and the air in cylinders b b is compressed. The resistance of the air in the cylinders overcomes the momentum of the car, and it stops. At the same time connecting-rods j 9' have turned clutches klabackward into the position shown in full lines in Fig. 3. When in this position, the pawl 'n swings by the force of gravitation toward the stud p, and its free end comes in contact with the inside of flange Z. When the car is to be started, lever 21 is thrown backward, thereby releasing spool C from the clutches 1' r. The reaction of the compressed air in the cylinders now operates to force the pistons and the too their outward movement arm is assumes the position shown in dotted lines, Fig. 3,and pawl 91. swings forward against the side of its case, andis withdrawn from contact with the flange Z.

I have found in practice that some of the air in the cylinders 12 is lost at each compression, and in consequence the expansion of the air remaining in the cylinder fails to carry the pis ton forward quite to its normal position.

For the purpose of insuring the full completion of the forward stroke of the piston, I use a spiral spring, 6, which rests against the piston and is of sufficient strength to insure the complete forward movement of the piston at every stroke.

For the purpose of renewing the supply of air in the cylinder, I provide the valve which admits air to the cylinder whenever the pressure in the cylinder is less than that of the surrounding atmosphere.

I claim as my invention 1. A car-brake consisting of the following elements, namely: a cylinder secured to the frame of the car, a piston adapted to move longitudinally in said cylinder, a spring contained within said cylinder and arranged to force said piston outward ,a valve arranged to admit air into said cylinder, a cross-head connected to and moving with said piston, a spool turning loosely on the axle of a car-truck, a strap secured to said spool and to said cross-head, a

clutch mounted on said axle, arranged to turn 1 therewith, to slide thereon, and to engage said spool, and means for sliding said clutch, all

combined substantially as and adapted. to co operate for the purpose specified.

2. A car-starter consisting of the following elements, namely: a cylinder secured to the frame of the car, a piston adapted to move longitudinally within said cylinder and to compress the air contained therein, a cross-head connected to and moving with said piston, means, substantially as described, for connecting said cross-head with the axle of the cartruck, whereby the air in said cylinder is compressed by the revolution of said axle, a clutch adapted to engage,when moving in one direction only, with one of a pair of wheels on said axle, and a connecting-rod attached to said clutch and to said cross-head, all combined and arranged to co-operate substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. In a car brake and starter, the combination, substantially as shown and described, of cylinder 1), piston c, cross-head h, connectingrod j, arm k, and pawl 91 with wheel B, having annular flange Z, and axle m, for the purpose specified.

4. In a car brake and starter, cylinders 12 b, cross-head h, apair of pistons arranged to-move longitudinally in said cylinders, axle m, spool O, strap q, clutches r r, levers s s, toggle-joint t, rod u, and lever 12, all combined substantially as and for the purpose specified.

ALFRED B. ARNOLD. 

